Stocks & ETFs to watch for end of Qtr + 5 stocks that were upgraded including Volkswagen and Micron

- Remember that with end of quarter, investment managers are exercising end-of-quarter rebalancing. This is where money managers typically buy into stock market underperformers, and take profits/sell those stock market darlings. They do this to bring their investment portfolios back into alignment, to ensure the fund meets its mandate. WATCH our 60-second video to find out who this quarter's best and worst performers are in the US andAustralia, that could be subject to rebalancing.

Institutional ETF flows have started to go into the $Ishares Russell 1000 Value Etf (IWD.US)$ this month; with many believing the ETF will turn a corner, after it's been subject to YTD and YoY outflows. The ETF is down 5.4% from its July high. The IWD ETFs gives investors exposure to US companies that are thought to be undervalued by the market, relative to comparable companies. The IWD's biggest holdings include Berkshire Hathaway $Berkshire Hathaway-A (BRK.A.US)$, Exxon Mobil Corp $Exxon Mobil (XOM.US)$, JPMorgan Chase & Co $Jpmorgan Chase & Co (JPM-C.US)$, Johnson & Johnson $Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.US)$, Chevron Corp $Chevron (CVX.US)$, Procter & Gamble $Procter & Gamble (PG.US)$ and Merck & Co $Merck & Co (MRK.US)$. The IWD ETF appears to be nearing oversold territory, and chartists might recognize the ETF appears due for a rally, so it's worth watching IWD.

Institutional ETF flows have also multiplied this month in the $iShares MSCI USA Quality Factor ETF (QUAL.US)$, which tells us investors are seeking companies with positive fundamentals, (high return on equity, stable year-over-year earnings growth and low financial leverage). QUAL's biggest holdings include Nvidia Corp $NVIDIA (NVDA.US)$ (5.8% Of The Etf), Visa $Visa (V.US)$ (4.64%), Meta $Meta Platforms (META.US)$ (4.4%), Apple $Apple (AAPL.US)$ (4.4%), Microsoft $Microsoft (MSFT.US)$ (4.4%), and Mastercard $MasterCard (MA.US)$ (4.4%). The QUAL ETF is down 5.6% from its July high and appears to be nearing oversold territory. If you are a chartist, you'd also see the QUAL ETF looks due for a bounce. So this is an ETF to watch.

1- Pallet business Brambles $Brambles Ltd (BXB.AU)$ be upgraded by Macquarie to outperform.

2- Australia's biggest electricity and gas seller, AGL $AGL Energy Ltd (AGL.AU)$ upgraded by Macquarie to outperform.

3- Global toll road giant Transurban $Transurban Group (TCL.AU)$ raised to a buy by Jefferies.

1- Microchip business, Micron Technology $Micron Technology (MU.US)$ was upgraded as a BUY by Deutsche Bank (DB) $Deutsche Bank (DB.US)$ as Micron is benefiting from increasing demand for AI servers. Micron's product price increases should accelerate the business's revenue and earnings per share (EPS) above street estimates for the next few quarters according to Deutsche Bank. DB not only upgraded Micron as a buy but also raised its price target from $65 to $85, citing a ~20% potential upside from current levels.

2- Car maker and EV giant, Volkswagen $VOLKSWAGEN AG (VLKAF.US)$, was upgraded by Stifel $Stifel Financial (SF.US)$ to a buy amid the green energy push. Stifel upgraded Volkswagen saying it's seeing 'record negative sentiment' but the business is in a 'critical phase' and sees upside due to cost-cutting. Volkswagen has 18 buys, 5 holds and 2 sells according to Bloomberg.